Danelle DeCiantis is 31 years old and has end-stage lung disease due to cystic fibrosis. Originally diagnosed at the age of 2 with CF, Danelle's lungs have been severely damaged by this disease. She lives in Manchester, CT with her husband, Crescent, and her Shih-Tzu puppy, Holly. She recieved her BS degree from the University of Connecticut, and is employed by a law firm in Hartford, C.

Lung Transplants are very costly with expenses of $250,000 to $300,000 for surgery and hospitalization. Fortunately, most of these expenses should be covered by her insurance. However, there are related costs which will not be covered. These will include travel to and from transplant centers, 6 months of temporary housing, meals, parking, insurance premiums, post-transplant drugs, biopsies, and test.

Danelle has been listed for a double lung transplant since the end of March 1998. The projected waiting time is 15 to 18 months. If a suitable organ match is not found, Danelle will require a living donor transplant of lung lobes from either family member or friends; two donors will be selected. This will require additional expense since medical insurance will only cover part of the procedure. Uncovered costs include donor testing and tissue-typing, relocation and travel expenses to the University of Southern California, partial coverage for major surgery, and two weeks hospitalization for each dono.

There will be a dinner to help defray the cost of the operation and associated expenses, administered by the National Transplant Assistance Fund (NTAF). It is to be held at the Aqua Turf (Kay's Pier North) in Plantsville, CT. A minimum donation of $35 for the dinner is requested, all but $12.75 of which is tax-deductabl.

Checks should be made payable to "NTAF - The Lung Transplant Fund", with "In honor of Danelle Deciantis" in Memo. Please send a card with your check, name, number attending, and donation amount to Marie & John Roulier, 19 Fellen Rd, Storrs, CT 06268.

Tickets are also available through: Eileen: 860-486-0046 and Sandy: 860-486-2222.

Jeffrey Buchbinder